War on Drugs “Not Successful”

The “War on Drugs” a term first used by Richard Nixon was an agenda intended to both define and reduce the illegal drug trade. The initiative includes a set of laws and policies intended to discourage the production, discount distribution, and consumption of illegal substances.

According to the AP after 40 years, over $1 Trillion dollars spent, and hundreds of thousands of lives lost, NONE of the goals defined by the War on Drugs have been accomplished. The US drug czar Gil Kerlikowske went on record saying “In the grand scheme, it has not been successful, Forty years later, the concern about drugs and drug problems is, if anything, magnified, intensified.”

When looking at statistics records indicate that marijuana and prescription drug abuse are climbing, while cocaine use is way down. I think aside from taking a look at the drug program as a whole, which clearly needs to be done, something needs to be done for drug sentencing laws. Thousands of under represented youth are incarserated due to minor drug offenses costing the tax payers millions of dollars as a well.